Friday, January 13, 2012

Whispers of Murder: Chapter One Sneak Peek

Isabelle
Donnelly’s eyes darted around the room, first to her mother, then her sister
before coming to rest on the man that stood as a barrier between herself and
her betrothed.

“We are gathered here today in the presence of God to offer
up our bounteous thanks for the gift of marriage, and to witness the joining
together of Isabelle and Leo,” the pastor said.

Isabelle’s gaze returned to her mother who was perched on a
pew in the front row.Her mother’s eyes
were riveted on a single piece of lace fabric in her lap that she picked at
like she hoped it would unravel, just like she wished the wedding would.She hadn’t made eye contact with her daughter
since she entered the church, and Isabelle suspected she wouldn’t, not after
the blow up she’d had with her father the night before.He’d knocked on the door to Isabelle’s hotel
room with a request to speak with her, but it hadn’t taken long to realize it
was his last-ditch effort to dissuade her from the decision she’d made to
marry.When she refused to listen to
what Dad liked to call “the Donnelly voice of reason,” he stomped out of the
room, slamming the door behind him.She
hadn’t seen him since.

The pastor continued.“Today is a time for family and friends to share in their commitment to
each other by offering Isabelle and Leo our continued support, love and best
wishes in their lives together.”

Isabelle’s sister, Melanie, slouched back in her seat,
rolled her eyes in disgust and gave Isabelle a why-the-hell-are-you-doing-this
glance.Isabelle scrunched her eyes shut
and wished they would all disappear, but when she opened them again, her family
was still there.Today was the day she
would marry the man of her dreams, but everywhere she looked she was met with
scowls of disapproval.It made her
question why they’d come at all and why they hadn’t forsaken her like her
father, who had left her at the last moment to walk down the aisle alone.Did he really think she wouldn’t go through
with it just because he disapproved?And
where was Emmett?He promised he’d be
there, and yet as she studied the faces of everyone in attendance, his was
absent.

Isabelle disregarded the tension saturating the room and
stared into Leo’s eyes.The room around
them whirred to a stop, and in slow motion he slid the three-carat diamond ring
into position on her finger.

“I know we’ve only known each other for a few months,” he
said, “but I’d feel the same even if it had been three years.I never knew women like you existed.From the first time we bumped into each
another, I knew I had to have you.Nothing else mattered to me anymore, only you.”

A faint gagging sound broke the silence.Isabelle turned to her sister who clasped her
hand to her throat like she had a piece of meat lodged inside that she was
desperate to get out.

The next two minutes passed by like a blur, and in the end
Isabelle wasn’t sure if she’d said what she intended, nor if any of the vows
she’d spent the past several days rehearsing had come out as planned.All that mattered to her now was that the
wedding was over and the two of them could get on with their lives somewhere
far away from the scrutiny of her family.

Leo rubbed his thumb over her hand and mouthed the words,
“We’re almost there.”

The pastor surveyed the audience and spoke.“If any of you can show just cause why these
two fine people shouldn’t be married, speak now or else forever hold your
peace.”

Isabelle gave Melanie a glare that said: Stop this wedding
and I’ll never forgive you.Her sister
uncrossed her legs and crossed them together on the opposite side but remained
silent.

The back doors to the church flung open like they’d been
struck by an onslaught of insurgents and Isabelle’s father staggered
inside.Emmett followed close behind.Neither spoke, but Isabelle’s father
eyeballed her with a solemn look on his face.A single tear traveled down his cheek and splashed down on the belt
buckle that cinched to the waist of his Wrangler jeans.She was stunned.Her father had never cried in front of her
before.Emmett ushered him to a row at
the back of the room and they lowered their bodies down into their seats.

The preacher waited until the two men were settled in and
continued.“Now that Isabelle and Leo
have given themselves to each other by solemn vows, before us and before God as
witness, and have shown their affection and trust by the giving and receiving
of rings and by joining hands, and by the power vested in me I pronounce…”

Isabelle’s knees buckled like they’d been stuffed with
cotton, and she collapsed.Her head
smacked against the hardwood floor upon impact and she lay there motionless,
her eyes closed.

Within seconds her sister had scurried to her side and
cradled Isabelle’s head in her lap.Leo
bent down to touch her but Melanie slapped his hand away.“Don’t touch her!” she hissed.“You did this!”She turned toward the back of the room and
yelled, “Emmett?”But there was no need,
he was already there.

What should have been one of the happiest moments in Isabelle’s
life turned out to be the day her whole world unraveled.